Anthony Giansanti Named 2018 Skeeters Most Valuable Player

SUGAR LAND, TX - The Sugar Land Skeeters today announced that Anthony Giansanti was named the club's 2018 Most Valuable Player.

Giansanti, 30, had a slash line of .295/.357/.456 to go with 79 runs, 22 doubles 17 home runs, 58 RBIs and 35 stolen bases. He placed sixth in the league in runs scored, seventh in home runs, fifth in stolen bases and 10th in slugging percentage. Giansanti is the first player in Skeeters history to hit at least 15 home runs and steal at least 30 bases in a single season.

The former Chicago Cubs farmhand was named an Atlantic League Post-Season All-Star and was also named to the league's All-Defensive Team. Giansanti was one of the most versatile defenders in the league, making over 40 appearances in the outfield and the infield. He was one of just two players in the league to accomplish that feat.

Giansanti, who was appearing in his ninth professional season in 2018, set single-season career highs in runs, home runs, RBIs and stolen bases. His .295 average was also a career-high for a season in which he played at least 80 games.

Giansanti was a key contributor for the Skeeters through their postseason run to the Atlantic League Championship. He hit .310 with a home run and four RBIs through 10 games in the playoffs and his eight runs scored in the postseason were the third-most of any player in the league. Giansanti's solo home run in the ninth inning of Game 5 of the Freedom Division Championship Series kick-started a three-run ninth-inning rally that helped lead the team to a come-from-behind victory in extra innings over the Lancaster Barnstormers.

The Oakland Athletics selected Giansanti in the 49th round of the 2009 MLB Draft out of Siena College. He signed with the Chicago Cubs in June 2010 and spent seven seasons in their Minor League system, reaching as high as Triple-A.

Giansanti first appeared in the Atlantic League in 2016 with the Bridgeport Bluefish. He first joined the Skeeters in 2017 and was selected to the Atlantic League All-Star Game that season. Giansanti also went on a 26-game hitting streak in 2017, which still stands as a Skeeters franchise record.